From one Superman to another, Shaquille O’Neal is pulling for Dwight Howard to win a championship for Orlando.

Yeah, the same Shaq who once called Howard an “imposter” and claimed that anything Dwight has done, Shaq “invented.” Hey, it was all in the name of selling tickets, as chronicled by the Orlando Sentinel. The Big Shamrock really likes Foul on You.

Let the Diesel explain:

“But in real life, he’s cool, a great young player, represents the big men very well and when I’m done, I don’t really see anybody in his way. Hopefully he can win a couple of championships for the city because it’s a beautiful city, I’ve been living here 20 years and I’ll be living here for the next 20 years so hopefully he’ll get them there and take them over the top. Because if he doesn’t get them over the top, he’s going to get the blame.”

Shaq is probably right on that last part. Howard, to his credit, has avoided the verbal sparring that seems to be the most consistent part of O’Neal’s game these days. Whether it’s Kobe Bryant or Stan Van Gundy or Erick Dampier or Mo Williams, few are safe.

@MackDaddy- You speak the truth man. Dwight Howard has absolutly no challenge in the league and he still doesnt dominate. Most overrated player in the league and he completely disappears in the playoffs, i.e. against Boston and LA in the finals. Shaq in his prime was an absolute monster. Whenever he got the ball in the lowpost it was a bucket or he was going to the foul line and he was going real centers, not guys like bargnani, horford or noahs. Howard will never ever be as good as the Diesel.

shaq said, he is doesn’t see anyone in his way when he is done. So that means Shaq can stop dwight now? plz, shaq has been done since 2002. Dwade carried 2006 miami heat. Shaq had 3 good years with L.A, and Kobe carried them in crucial situation. Shaq is number two to Kobe, and his 5 rings represent that. If dwight learns how to shoot, and changes his form, he could be the most dominant big player to play the game. Dwight needs free throws, and post moves. He needs to change his shooting form, what is patrick ewing doing? He has to extend his elbow damn it. You can’t shoot the same wrong shot and get better results. You have to shoot the correct shot over and over again. Pat Ewing, is a bad player and coach.

i respect SHAq 4 all of his past achievements (4 RINGS) and 4 being da most Dominate player in da league N his day,but he’s not worth taking seriously anymore,i mean he showed dat n playoffs vs.BULLs however he stil is a VET and CHAMPION and should help out the C’ s. Bulls all da way!

Shaq in his prime was a true center playing against other hall of fame centers, and DOMINATING them. The bad sportsmanship “Hack-A-Shaq” was born only because there was no other way he could be stopped. Thats called domination. To be comapred to Wilt, that’s great. Kobe is compared to Jordan, that’s great. You’d be laughed out of the building comparing Howard to ANY Hall of Famer, fact.

Howard isn’t even on the same planet as Shaq- but thats not supposed to be an offence, its fact. Who’s he up against right now in the league? No one… no centers! Want proof? Look at the last Allstar game. STARTING Center for West was a PF!! No real centers. Look at East… same thing. Howard is athletic yes, but he’s up against chump change ‘centers’ these days.

Todays centers are more like beefy power forwards. But they would absolutely snapped if playing against true allstar centers of the past. People are too quick to forget just scary Shaq was. There was no way to stop the guy. No player could take him 1 on 1. A matchup nightmare. Howard is good, Howard shows promise, but a Great? Hardly. After 6 years in the league playing against lower calibre centers, what’s he really done? Go look back at Shaq’s first 6 years. Up against The Dream, Ewing, Robinson… and still rocked the rim.

I bet half the Shaq haters here are teens that arent old enough to actually remember how great Shaq was, because they were still learning to walk when Shaq was schooling the league in how to dominate. Show respect young ones- Shaq may talk alot, but he’s EARNED IT.

Nahh I don’t hate Shaq, but he shouldn’t say things to his fellow players and former coach like those. I look up to Shaq but he shouldn’t degrade himself by saying those stupid things. Shaq is a proven elite NBA star, atleast he could fade with some grace and decency. About who’s gonna win this year, well no one knows! All you guys saying are all predictions so stop arguing with one another. If you think lakers will be champs again or Boston or Heat so be it, but 1 THING is sure, this next season will be so so interesting. It’s like Pac-Mayweather finally happening.

I like Shaq because he is a cool and funny guy to be around. But if he wants to get out of the game with dignity and pride like many other greatsplayers he must remain quiet and play the game.
Shaq let your game speaks on your behalf and start preparing your retirement. I agree with Shaq that Dwight has a lot of pressure on him to do something great in other not to get the blame because not only he is getting older and has been in the league for a while but also so many teams around the league are getting better too.

Come on… how many nicknames did Shaq have?
No-one in the league can now refer as himself as something close to “cactus” or “aristotle” because he’ll claim that he’s the original… If you’re gonna get attached to it, stop changing nicknames, dude!

who cares… I mean: didn’t the commentators sometimes called MJ “superman” too… I can remember a “superman is back” on a dunk when he came back with #45…

Aaaaaanyway… I love Shaq: he cracks me up, AND he’s one of the best of all times

Shaq is the best screw anybody who doesn’t think so. Too many 2010-born nba annalists here.

Yeah ok, he’s 38 years old and will do like 10Ppg, but why should his character change just because his numbers have? He was a dam rookie and averaged 29-13-3; From the start to the end he’ll be talking trash. The hypocrites like to laugh at a players jokes when the player is all cool and awsome, but the day they aren’t a front page person, haters will talk trash acting like what they say should have value to someone who they’ve been worshipping through fanfare before.

Dude, i think all your comments are retared….SHAQ IS A LEGEND! HE DONE MORE IN HIS CAREER THAN D12 WILL EVER DO. HE WAS THE ALL GREAT POWERMAN. BELIEVE ME, D12 WILL NEVER BE ON SHAQ’S LEVEL..MARK MY WORDS! ATLEAST SAY AMARE OR SOMETHING BUT D12 CMON…

Shaq is still the best… no one in the NBA plays like Shaq, the foot work, post moves, his the best center ever, dwight maybe a good player, but he dont have moves like shaq, all he knows is to jump. haha

Yes, shaq was the original superman..And to this point, in his prime years, he is def. more dominate than howard has yet to achieve. But the superman nickname, was just something that stuck and he ran with it. Yes, we knw Shaq was the Original, Dwight will be the first to tell you that. But very rarely to the sequals surpass the Original, and i think dwight can do just that. He is much faster, and more athletic than shaq ever was. If he find a way to but an offensive game together, and Jameer starts running the team alil bit, we can see Howard easily avg. 30 points 15 boards, and yes 5 assists per game. If Howard could keep his turnovers to 2 per game. Now that Rasheed Wallace retired, Shaq on the way out, i only see Perkins, and maybe Bynum is healthy, able to bang with Howard. This Year is the closing window for Orlando to win a champison…We’ve been knocking on the door for the past 2-3 years, and with the celtics getting older, and Miami still needing to play an actual game together before we can declare them the favs. to win, we need Howard to become the leader we knw hes capable of being.

Hey don’t make a big drama out of Shaq’s comments, this is just Shaq being Shaq, it’s not that he is not mature, he never has been, although he is the most dominant player ever step on a court (in terms of crushing his oponents before someone starts talking about MJ or Dr. J or anyone else) and the best center that has played in the league in the last decade.

Remember when he used to break backboards? Later then he understood he could reach the peak of his game and focused on airballing freethrows, and now he just talks. This is the way he is, he will probably will be 50 and still be talking that he is best than future all star centers so let’s just take his statements as part of the showcase he always brings.

But also enjoy what he can or can not do for Boston, because either Shaq helps them or not, and even with the aging issue they will be a great team to watch.

As for Dwight, he is the most dominant center at this moment, but he still needs to improve a lot his low post game, he crashes the board, he dunks every time he wants but until he starts making 10 to 13 feet mid range shots and making hesitation moves like Hakeem, Spinning with the speed Shaq used to, or hooking the ball as Ewing did, he will not win a championship just because even when Orlando is great from the 3 point range, it is a 30 to 40% chance that you make the shots against a 55-70 if you get in the paint.

All i know is that the nba isnt going to be the same without shaq when he leaves.
Dont hate on shaq because he isnt making runs to the finals and winning tittles he is still the same dude he always been

if shaq had his big a$$ working out like dwight, shaq would had been super great. shaq and kobe show….. funny. i bet shaq could get 81 points on his best years. shaq you still great. ummmm top 3 centers of all time. you the best. no hater

i agree shaq is the man unless you just started watching the nba. even if howard by some miracle approaches shaq’s stats he will have done it in a much less competetive league if shaq played now in his prime in THIS league he would challenge wilt and make dwight look like a small unathletic child but dwight still good but will never be shaq regardless of how long he plays just lacking the tools.

shaq and dwight hoawrd are both great nba players, but shaq shouldnt of never caused any drama with Howard last year, but shaq is right though, shaq is the real superman, dwight is superboy, but both are phenomenal players, and both will be in the hall of fame for sure, so i say shaq and dwight howard both are AWESOME….but shaq do need to keep his mouth shut and just play basketball

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! That is toooooo funny!!!!!!!!!!! Boston better hope Shaq is healthy enough to play in the playoffs when they role around. I think you need to realize Shaq is noooooooooooo where even close to the dominant player he use to be!!!

Man you are totally right I don’t understand where the haters are either.
I personally think that Shaq is not only one of or maybe even the most dominant nba player
ever to play game but I also think he was one of the games greatest entertainers.
So with that said I do recall that selling tickets is a major thing these days
especially considering the economy. So before you go judging the man’s legacy
just think about what he’s actually done for the game on and off the court
aside from the nick nack blows he through at former comrads (entertainment).
You will realize that u are waisting your time posting these extremely lame comments.

The guy has had an Allstar career and is just about to retire. If anyone is entitled to talk the talk, it’s him. If anyone needs to show any respect and keep their traps shut it’s everyone else. Howard, Penny, Gundy, and anyone else from Orlando need to win like Shaq has won, and then they can talk. Until then, dont hate a winner. Not many Hall of Famers that can claim theyve won championships with quite possibly 3 different teams. The only reason Boston lost game 7 was because they had no viable option at C with Perkins out. That wont be a problem this year.

Hey Jojo, Boston Fans always says if they had perkins on game 7, they won the tittle, did you remember Lakers had Bynum and Kobe also injured??? I think for sure if both teams were healthy still Lakers won it, so please stop about it, I Hope BOSTON beat MIA this year, and again LAL vs BOS on the finals with all player in good shape to see which team is better on a 7 game series,

It’s different when they are injured and different when they don’t play. Even contributing 5 minutes makes a difference to not being able to contirbute at all (and I mean on the court and not from the bench). And the fact that it was due to rebounding and losing by 4 points, of course having the defensive presence of Perk would have made some difference. The outcome still could have been the same but if you factor in that Perk could have contributed, maybe the outcome would have been different. Either way, Lakers did a good job in the win. It’ll be nice to have another Celtics-Lakers Final but I guess every team will have to earn it this season. Can’t wait for the season to start.

You lame boston fans have too many excuses as to why you lost to a better team, THE LAKERS!!!!! You guys are a bunch of poor losers!! Wonder what excuses you will come up with when the LAKERS 3 peat!! If you really think Shaq will help the celtics win a title, please please please think again!!!

Well, Shaq didn’t win any championships in Orlando. As matter of fact, they were the first team or first 3 teams who got swept in the Finals. Just ignore Shaq, he is just tryin to create some noise in his fast muzzling career. Howard should be not pressured, Just do your best and let God guide you.

Honestly shaq is becoming an intellectual midget, he 38, is time for him to be humble and let the younger players shine. look how many ppl he sme sort of altercation with — kobe, Penny, wade, mo williams, stan van gundy, pat riley n prolly many more…. is better for him to exit da nba in a decent manner otherwise he’s just gone distroy his image.

“But in real life, he’s cool, a great young player, represents the big men very well and when I’m done, I don’t really see anybody in his way.” -Shaq

What does this mean? He’s been in the league for twenty years now, and he’s already in the twilight of his career. Why would Shaq call D12 an impostor when Howard really wants to do is to emulate the person whom he sees himself to further complement his game? When Kobe studied all of His Airness’ moves, did Jordan say that Kobe is the number one copycat of his? When Kobe patterned his game to Jordan’s, never did Jordan talk trash to Kobe. When Kobe dropped 81 bombs against the Raptors, did Kobe say that he is greater than MJ? We heard none (although for me, number 24 is nostalgic because it is one greater than 23, and just one).

Now Howard should really do is to win a championship for his squad for the Big Mouth to shut up. No disrespect for Shaq, but if Shaq REALLY wants to gain the respect that he, ahem, deserves, then he should respect his peers as well. Being 7 feet and 350 pounds takes a lot of brain to become a respectable person.

Shaq has always been Superman. He even had a tat with a big S put on his arm, WELL before Howard even got into the league. So for Howard to start calling himself Superman just because of a Dunk comp gimmick is pretty disrespectful.

There’s only one Superman, and thats Shaq. Howard can get another nickname.

@ Tenki – well said! Seriously Shaq is an anoying old grumpy guy…please just pack your bag and go home, forget the NBA. The league has new stars now n nobody really cares about him, he is probably just jeallous that Kobe is still on his prime and winning rings. Plus when Shaq was on his prime and Kobe was still getting there; he was kicked out of LA because according to his own words: “There is only space for Kobe in LA” – turns out the Lakers were right in keeping Kobe!

@Chris – Bro you got everything wrong. Superman is a “public figure”, he certainly has it creators (someone from Marvel Comics) but they are neither Shaq, nor D12. That said Howard has the exactly the same right to use the nickname Superman as any other player (as Shaq). Please understand that Superman is not Shaq’s private brnad/nickname, on the other hand Air Jordan IS Jordan’s creation/brand. If Nike decided they would create an Air Kobe there is nothing Jordan could do since those would be two separate lines from the same company. Certainly Kobe/Jordan/Nike would not be stupid to do it but the sure could.

shaq gives himself a new nickname almost every year, including superman. Dwight didnt call himself superman, his team did. Dwight shoulda responded, I dont really care you can have the name, although i head glen davis is trying to get rid of his nick name, maybe he can have that one

If only you actually heard how the superman came into play. Dwight Howard at the end of practices would fool around and jump as high/far as he coould and his teammates related it to superman. So when Jameer and Dwight were in New Orleans, Jameer had found a superman costume and suggested it to dwight, Dwight wore it and ever since everybody has been calling him superman. Not really his choice, but rather the preference of the thousands of fans who call him that and his fellow teammates. So not really disrespectful at all…